Theatre blog + Christianity | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog+world/christianity
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Every thing a season ... the Bible's lasting impact on theatrehttps://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/oct/19/theatre-passion-for-bible
Theatres up and down the land are eager to celebrate 400 years of the King James Bible. So why does the word of God work so well on stage?<p>We all know by now that the King James Bible is 400 years old, right? I mean, it has been everywhere. We've had <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00xh4t4" title="">James Naughtie retelling its story on Radio Four</a>, a <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/apr/17/book-of-books-melvyn-bragg-review" title="">book </a> and a <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00zmc6f" title="">television series from Melvyn Bragg</a> and, over on BBC Four, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00yvs8n" title="">Adam Nicolson comparing the book to the Millennium Dome</a>. There have been exhibitions, lectures, readathons and <a href="http://www.kingjamesbibletrust.org/events/2011/09/23/a-light-unto-my-path-flower-festival" title="">flower festivals</a>. This Sunday, there's even a <a href="http://www.kingjamesbibletrust.org/events/2011/10/23/tongues-of-fire" title="">"Bible Cake" courtesy of Bradford Cathedral</a>, which will, presumably, lead to much wailing and gnashing of teeth.</p><p>Theatre has certainly played its part in this cloudburst of anniversary celebrations. Over 69 hours at Easter, all 788,280 words of the King James Bible was read onstage at <a href="http://www.shakespearesglobe.com/theatre/on-stage/the-bible" title="">Shakespeare's Globe</a>, which went as far as to name its current "Word of God" season in its honour. The <a href="http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/66120/production-seasons/king-james-bible-the-12-extracts.html" title="">National Theatre hosts a series of readings of its own throughout October</a>, while the RSC opens David Edgar's new play about the book's conception, <a href="http://www.rsc.org.uk/whats-on/written-on-the-heart/" title="">Written on the Heart</a>, next week in Stratford. Not forgetting, of course, the Bush theatre's marathon <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2011/oct/16/sixty-six-books-review?newsfeed=true" title="">Sixty-Six Books</a>, which opened the new theatre last week and contains 66 new plays by 66 writers, each inspired by a single book within the whole.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/oct/19/theatre-passion-for-bible">Continue reading...</a>TheatreStageCultureThe BibleReligionChristianityReligionWed, 19 Oct 2011 07:21:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/oct/19/theatre-passion-for-biblePhotograph: Murdo MacleodA good read ... the King James Bible was written to be read aloud so its natural home is the pulpit or stage. Photograph: Murdo MacleodPhotograph: Murdo MacleodA good read ... the King James Bible was written to be read aloud so its natural home is the pulpit or stage. Photograph: Murdo MacleodMatt Trueman2011-10-19T07:21:00ZActs of penance? Why Irish theatre is still obsessed with Catholicismhttps://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/oct/17/irish-theatre-catholicism
A spate of plays dealing with religious oppression in the country is a reminder that we can take years to process collective trauma<p>Towards the end of <a href="http://www.irishtheatremagazine.ie" title="">Irish Theatre Magazine</a>'s annual international critics' forum last Thursday, Willie White made a fascinating comment from the floor. The incoming artistic director of the Ulster Bank <a href="http://dublintheatrefestival.com/" title="">Dublin theatre festival</a> suggested the humiliation felt by many in the Republic of Ireland at being bailed out by the EU and the International Monetary Fund after the country's financial crisis was not entirely merited. As he saw it, Ireland had long ago ceded the independence it had gained in 1922 – not to the money men, but to the Catholic church. After seeing some of the shows in the festival, you could see what he meant. On one particular day, I saw three plays back to back which bore vivid witness to the church's hold for the greater part of the 20th century. Laundry by <a href="http://www.facebook.com/anuproductions" title="">ANU Productions</a> is a stunning piece of one-to-one site-specific theatre performed in a former <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magdalene_asylum" title="">Magdalene laundry</a> on the north side of the city where, right until the mid-1990s, young women were incarcerated, typically after falling pregnant while unmarried.</p><p>Still reeling from the terrible beauty of Louise Lowe's production, I rushed to <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2011/oct/05/testament-review" title="">Testament</a> by <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/colmtoibin" title="">Colm Tóibín</a>, a dark, brooding, wordy monologue starring none other than the Virgin Mary, who puts right a few misconceptions about the death of her son.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/oct/17/irish-theatre-catholicism">Continue reading...</a>TheatreStageCultureIrelandCatholicismReligionChristianityEuropeWorld newsMon, 17 Oct 2011 11:58:11 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/oct/17/irish-theatre-catholicismPhotograph: Cathal McNaughton/ReutersLiving on a prayer … a woman exits a Roman Catholic memorabilia shop in Knock, County Mayo, Ireland. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/ReutersPhotograph: Cathal McNaughton/ReutersLiving on a prayer … a woman exits a Roman Catholic memorabilia shop in Knock, County Mayo, Ireland. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/ReutersMark Fisher2011-10-17T11:58:11ZDivine comedy: how sacred is standup?https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/sep/26/sacred-standup-frank-skinner-atheist
Catholic comedian Frank Skinner wants standups to take on the so-called 'atheist establishment'. But does this even exist?<p>Rejoice, rejoice! Rationalism is cool, credulousness is socially unacceptable – and comedy is dominated by critical thinking on religion. In a <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/8774285/Subversive-believers-will-have-the-last-laugh.html" title="">remarkable piece in the Telegraph</a> last week, Cristina Odone reflected on <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2007/aug/17/edinburghfestival2007.edinburghfestival1" title="">Frank Skinner's</a> recent <a href="http://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2011/09/17/13998/atheists_are_as_big_a_threat_as_climate_change_deniers" title="">interview with the Archbishop of Canterbury</a>. In that encounter, Skinner, who is Catholic, had complained (with, I suspect, a twinkle in his eye) that belief was unfashionable in standup, and that it was time Christianity struck back at atheism. Odone takes these arguments and runs with them, dubbing Skinner "the comic who took on the establishment" and claiming comedy is in thrall to secularism.</p><p>Can she please tell me which comedy shows she's been watching? I'd love to see them. Can she mean <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/aug/17/marcus-brigstocke-edinburgh-review" title="">Marcus Brigstocke's God Collar</a>, a hymn to the consolations of religion? Can she mean the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2010/jul/22/tom-hollander-rev-television-drama" title="">award-winning sitcom Rev</a>, a sympathetic portrait of life as an Anglican vicar? Her, and Skinner's, contention that comedy is the preserve of rationalists just isn't true. I've lost count of the times I've seen <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2011/feb/14/simon-munnery-review" title="">standups take potshots</a> at Richard Dawkins, usually of the (untrue, I think) "he's just as fundamentalist as the fundamentalists" variety.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/sep/26/sacred-standup-frank-skinner-atheist">Continue reading...</a>Frank SkinnerComedyStageComedyCultureAtheismReligionChristianityCatholicismMon, 26 Sep 2011 11:04:53 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/sep/26/sacred-standup-frank-skinner-atheistPhotograph: Richard SakerI'm a believer ... Frank Skinner believes it's time Christianity struck back at atheism in the world of standup. Photograph: Richard SakerPhotograph: Richard SakerI'm a believer ... Frank Skinner believes it's time Christianity struck back at atheism in the world of standup. Photograph: Richard SakerBrian Logan2011-09-26T11:04:53ZSouth Park's Mormon musical should come to the West End | Phelim O'Neillhttps://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/may/13/south-park-mormon-musical-west-end
Messrs Parker and Stone may love lampooning the religious, but their satire is always respectful – at least to things made in heaven rather than earth<p>A stage musical about Mormon missionaries written by the creators of South Park sounds, at first, like something designed with the express purpose of causing controversy. Like many of the projects undertaken by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, however, it sounds far more scandalous than it actually is – and is actually very respectful to religious beliefs. They may take shots at how beliefs are presented by believers, or at how non-believers have a hard time accepting any faith's more outlandish concepts, but fundamental tenets remain unscathed by their piercing wit. They'll mock anything earthly, in other words, but the spiritual they tend to leave well alone. For, as the Monty Python team realised when writing <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/movie/78168/monty-python-s-life-of-brian" title="Life of Brian">Life of Brian</a>, despite the many faults of his many followers Jesus (who does appear in the new musical) is basically one of the good guys.</p><p>With rumours that the show, which <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/good-people-jerusalem-and-the-book-of-mormon-win-new-york-drama-critics-circle-awards/2011/05/10/AF5wSMhG_story.html" title="has been winning awards on Broadway">has been winning awards on Broadway</a>, is <a href="http://www.westendtheatre.com/11208/stage-spy/south-park-musical-west-end-bound/" title="set to come to the West End">set to come to the West End</a>, what should we expect? Religion and musicals have long been integral parts of Parker and Stone's comedy, even since their first major project together: the zero-budget student movie <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115819/" title="Cannibal: The Musical">Cannibal! The Musical</a>, which included Mormon travellers in its spoofery. Given that they were raised and schooled in Colorado – not far from Utah, where approximately 60% of the population are followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints" title="Mormonism">Mormonism</a> is not a religion they merely viewed from afar. Their next feature film, the sporadically hilarious <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=" 5natt1bhzn4"" title="Orgazmo">Orgazmo</a>, featured Parker as a martial-arts expert Mormon missionary who ends up becoming the titular porn star (he's trying to raise money to get married). While it would have been easy to generate some knee-jerk laughs from the belief-system itself, Parker and Stone tend to abstain from doing so.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/may/13/south-park-mormon-musical-west-end">Continue reading...</a>MusicalsTheatreStageSouth ParkTelevisionTV comedyAnimation on TVUS televisionCultureChristianityReligionWorld newsMormonismComedyFri, 13 May 2011 17:36:32 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2011/may/13/south-park-mormon-musical-west-endPhotograph: ParamountMatch made in heaven ... South Park – here taking off William and Kate – manages to lampoon religious believers without denigrating their beliefs. Photograph: ParamountPhotograph: ParamountMatch made in heaven ... South Park – here taking off William and Kate – manages to lampoon religious believers without denigrating their beliefs. Photograph: ParamountPhelim O'Neill2011-05-13T17:36:32ZCommunity theatre: how Oberammergau got it right | Mark Espinerhttps://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2010/jun/21/community-theatre-oberammergau-passion
The Bavarian village's world-famous passion play, staged every 10 years, brings local residents together to thrilling effect. Why don't we have anything like it in Britain?<p>Community theatre: two words that conjure the very worst image of theatre. Either it's self-indulgent amateur dramatics or worthy projects that tick the right social-issues boxes. But right now, deep in Bavaria, a small town called Oberammergau is displaying the kind of community theatre that doesn't fall into either of these categories – and showing the kind of creative engagement that you rarely glimpse in the UK. </p><p>Actually, it's only rarely glimpsed in Oberammergau, too. Every 10 years the whole village stages the <a href="http://www.oberammergau-passionsspiele.de/passion-play-oberammergau/" title="">Passion of Christ</a>. All the parts are performed by local people, and audiences flock from far and wide to see it; not just from Germany, but Europe and beyond. This year, should you wish to join, <a href="http://www.guardianholidayoffers.co.uk/holiday/oberammergau-passion-play-salzburg-and-lake-constance" title="">there's even a Guardian holiday offer</a> (in between Mozart in Salzburg and apple strudel in Switzerland).</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2010/jun/21/community-theatre-oberammergau-passion">Continue reading...</a>TheatreStageCultureChristianityGermany holidaysMon, 21 Jun 2010 10:53:17 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2010/jun/21/community-theatre-oberammergau-passionPhotograph: Sebastian Widmann/AFP/Getty ImagesKeeping it local ... villagers perform the Oberammergau passion play. Photograph: Sebastian Widmann/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Sebastian Widmann/AFP/Getty ImagesKeeping it local ... villagers perform the Oberammergau passion play. Photograph: Sebastian Widmann/AFP/Getty ImagesMark Espiner2010-06-21T10:53:17Z